Ray Nagin sentencing coverage on WDSU

WDSU’s coverage of the sentencing of former mayor Ray Nagin begins at 10 a.m. We’ll be on-air and online with the latest from Federal Court as it happens.

Camille Whitworth and I will anchor our coverage. We’ll be joined by analysts Pat Fanning, John Fuller and Mike Sherman to break down everything that happens in court. Travers Mackel and Sula Kim will have live reports from Federal Court.

It’ll be interesting to see a couple of things: (1) If judge Ginger Berrigan lectures Nagin before sentencing him and (2) if Nagin tries to lessen his sentence by showing remorse and offering an explanation to the people of New Orleans, neither of which he’s done so far.

For comparison, here are other local public officials sentenced in corruption cases:

Former congressman William Jefferson: 13.5 years

Former governor Edwin Edwards: 10 years

Former Mandeville mayor Eddie Price: 5 years, 3 months

Former Plaquemines Parish Sheriff Jiff Hingle: 3 years, 10 months

Former Jefferson Parish President Aaron Broussard: 3 years, 8 months

Former Detroit mayor Kwame Kilpatrick was sentenced to 28 years after his conviction on extortion, bribery and fraud charges. Former Illinois governor Rod Blagojevich was sentenced to 14 years after he was convicted on numerous corruption charges.

I was talking to people at work about Nagin’s situation on Tuesday. It’s hard to believe a guy who came into office with such fanfare, bravado and big ideas is about to go to jail for a very long time. But it’s time to close yet another painful chapter in the political history of New Orleans.